Rapid growth in consumer electronics is evident with mobility as a ubiquitous feature. Consumer electronics products, such as music players, digital camera, personal digital assistant (PDA), cellular phones, and notebooks, offer means for users to create, transfer, store, and consume information almost anywhere, anytime.
One area of consumer electronics growth, where mobility is quintessential is in location based services, such as navigation systems utilizing satellite-based Global Positioning System (GPS) devices. One such use of location based services is to efficiently transfer or route users to a user defined destination or service.
Navigation systems and location based services enabled systems have been incorporated in automobiles, notebooks, handheld devices, and other portable products. Today, these systems aid users by incorporating available, real-time relevant information, such as maps, directions, local businesses, or other points of interest. The real-time information provides invaluable relevant information, when available or in service areas. The relevant information is also invaluable when service is not available, as well.
One common feature of current personal navigation devices is that they can display navigation information on a screen, such as: the location co-ordinates of the device at; the speed of the device; and the direction of movement of the device. While the navigation information can be displayed in any number of ways most users use a map mode, which causes a map to be displayed on the screen of the personal navigation device, indicating the location of the device on the map.
Although users benefit greatly from the navigation functions of conventional navigation systems they still have difficulty timing and coordinating meetings with friends and colleagues. At the present the only way for users to coordinate meetings is through a series of phone calls, e-mails, or text messages. A navigation system is needed to address above drawbacks of these conventional systems.
Thus, a need still remains for a navigation system for multiple users that will allow users to more easily coordinate their activities with other people. In view of the ever-increasing commercial competitive pressures, along with growing consumer expectations and the diminishing opportunities for meaningful product differentiation in the marketplace, it is critical that answers be found for these problems. Additionally, the need to reduce costs, improve efficiencies and performance, and meet competitive pressures adds an even greater urgency to the critical necessity for finding answers to these problems.
Solutions to these problems have been long sought but prior developments have not taught or suggested any solutions and, thus, solutions to these problems have long eluded those skilled in the art.